{"id":4431,"date":"2022-02-23T23:24:31","date_gmt":"2022-02-23T23:24:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/CBMiX2h0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmN0aW5zaWRlci5jb20vbmV3cy9hcnRpY2xlL1NvdXRoLURha290YS1TZW5hdGUtcGFzc2VzLWJpbGwtdG8tbGVnYWxpemUtMTY5NDIyMTYucGhw0gEA"},"modified":"2022-02-23T23:24:31","modified_gmt":"2022-02-23T23:24:31","slug":"south-dakota-senate-passes-bill-to-legalize-recreational-pot-ct-insider","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thcinct.com\/?p=4431","title":{"rendered":"South Dakota Senate passes bill to legalize recreational pot – CT Insider"},"content":{"rendered":"
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PIERRE, S.D. (AP) \u2014 The South Dakota Senate on Wednesday passed a proposal to legalize recreational marijuana, as Republicans reasoned they should jump ahead of a campaign to legalize it on the November ballot.<\/p>\n

The bill passed by a single vote in the Republican-controlled Senate, showing just how divided lawmakers are on pot legalization. The proposal will next head to the House, where Republicans have pushed tighter restrictions on medical marijuana.<\/p>\n

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They have been prodded by voters, who approved by 54% a 2020 constitutional amendment, known as Amendment A, to legalize recreational pot, medical marijuana and hemp. However, Republican Gov. Kristi Noem challenged its constitutionality and the state Supreme Court ruled it should be nullified last year.<\/p>\n

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Marijuana legalization advocates are mounting a campaign to bring it back to voters in November, and some Republicans argue they should jump on the law-making process.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is your opportunity to take control of the issue,\u201d Republican Sen. David Wheeler, told the Senate. \u201cThis bill is your opportunity to do what the people said they wanted in Amendment A.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Sponsors of this year’s ballot measure campaign have also offered a compromise to the Legislature: they will drop the campaign if a law is enacted. The Senate’s bill would not allow cannabis plants to be grown in people’s homes and allow local governments to opt out of allowing retail sites.<\/p>\n

The proposal, known as Senate Bill 3, emerged from a committee of lawmakers that studied the issue for months last year. It would legalize recreational possession of up to an ounce of marijuana by people ages 21 and older. The bill also would allow it to be grown, processed and sold. Currently, possession of two ounces or less is a class 1 misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in jail and $2,000 in fines.<\/p>\n

However, those opposed argued that recreational pot legalization is not a done deal.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf the voters tell us that’s what they want when they actually get the chance to say how they feel, we’ll find out,\u201d said Republican Sen. Lee Schoenbeck. \u201cBut there’s no reason to get ahead of that.\u201d<\/p>\n